The 24-year-old Colorado Avalanche defenceman has been through a lot during his first six years in the league, but has found a comfortable home in Denver.

A former first overall pick, Johnson is developing into the dominant blue-liner he was expected to be.

“Here I just feel like they gave me an opportunity to just go out and try to play my game, and not try to be someone that I’m not,” said Johnson, prior to going up against the Edmonton Oilers Monday. “I can just go out and play 20-25 minutes a night, be solid at both ends of the ice and not feel like I have to put up 50-60 points every season. I can just be who I am and be a solid two-way defenceman.”

Johnson was selected first overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft out of the University of Minnesota.

His NHL career got of to an ignominious start when he ripped up his knee in a golf-cart accident following his rookie season.

The injury forced the Bloomington, Minn., native to miss his entire sophomore campaign, putting him in the doghouse with the Blues organization.

Eventually, Johnson was traded to the Avalanche, where for the past year and a half, he’s been developing an all-around game.

“Defenceman sometimes take a little bit longer to develop, but he’s a big, strong guy, who’s physical,” said Avalanche head coach Joe Sacco.

“I think his (development) curve is good for us. After the trade the year before, to the end of the season, it took him a while to get adjusted to everything. But he’s coming along well.”

The Avalanche were encouraged by what they saw in Johnson and signed him to a four-year, $15-million extension this summer.

“I really like it here, the coaching staff has given me the utmost trust and responsibility as far as ice time goes,” Johnson said. “I really get along with the guys here as well. Being a high pick you’re going to have high expectations and that’s normal and I still put a lot of pressure on myself to be good every night.”

On a team full of rising talent, which includes the youngest captain in the league in Gabriel Landeskog, Johnson is feeling comfortable with his leadership role.

He’s had to mature very quickly in a short amount of time.

“I came in as a naive and inexperienced 19-year-old and now I’m 24, which is still young, but I feel older, especially on this team because we’re the youngest team in the league,” Johnson said. “I’ve played a decent amount of games in this league, so I think I’ll be able to help some of the younger guys.

“It’s crazy how time flies and how you’re in one situation as a rookie and now you’re in your sixth year in the league and now you’ve taken on a leadership role and that kind of grows. It’s definitely been a fun transition to be a part of.”

Johnson is averaging a team-high 22:04 minutes so far this year.

“With EJ it’s just about going out and pla ying hard and everything else will take care of itself,” said Sacco. “He can’t worry about all the stuff that you can’t control outside of the game. For him it’s more about just staying inside the game. I think he puts too much pressure on himself sometimes and that affects him. We’re trying to do the opposite and get him to go out and just play. Usually if you put the work ethic in … the skill will come out after that.”

Former No. 1 pick Erik Johnson settling in with Avalanche

The 24-year-old Colorado Avalanche defenceman has been through a lot during his first six years in the league, but has found a comfortable home in Denver.

A former first overall pick, Johnson is developing into the dominant blue-liner he was expected to be.

“Here I just feel like they gave me an opportunity to just go out and try to play my game, and not try to be someone that I’m not,” said Johnson, prior to going up against the Edmonton Oilers Monday. “I can just go out and play 20-25 minutes a night, be solid at both ends of the ice and not feel like I have to put up 50-60 points every season. I can just be who I am and be a solid two-way defenceman.”

Johnson was selected first overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft out of the University of Minnesota.

His NHL career got of to an ignominious start when he ripped up his knee in a golf-cart accident following his rookie season.